[杀G精锐部队] 第二次作业：Issue144/Arugment147 by Show Rain

Show_RainUID: 2419083

TOPIC: ARGUMENT147 - The following appeared in an editorial in a business magazine.
"Although the sales of Whirlwind video games have declined over the past two years, a recent survey of video-game players suggests that this sales trend is about to be reversed. The survey asked video-game players what features they thought were most important in a video game. According to the survey, players prefer games that provide lifelike graphics, which require the most up-to-date computers. Whirlwind has just introduced several such games with an extensive advertising campaign directed at people 10 to 25 years old, the age-group most likely to play video games. It follows, then, that the sales of Whirlwind video games are likely to increase dramatically in the next few months."

WORDS: 440          TIME: 00:56:42         

The argument said Whirlwind Company will reverse its two-year sales decreasing after the survey they did recently.  Because the company has just introduced several new games to the people whom they're sure to be interested in playing video games. At first glance, the argument seems to be reasonable, but further consideration gives that it contains some logical flaw and is therefore unconvincing.
Firstly, the company's sales decreasing can't be attribute to the product they were given before. Perhaps it's because of the total economic environment. Maybe they are in economic depression, people have no money to buy these things for entertainment. Perhaps it's just because of its marketing department that doesn't do well on their jobs.

Secondly, the survey to the video-game players on what games they prefer and what styles they like only gives the result, but they don't provide any statistic data to us.  It doesn't tell us the age, gender, the number of people and other details about the survey. Without these statistic data, it's not convinced me that the survey shows what they told us and the sales trend can be reversed.

Thirdly, even if the survey shows players like the games they has introduced, it's arbitrary to conclude that 10 to 25 years old people are also interested in this kind of games, though the group most likely to play video games.  Maybe the people in this age group are very busy with their homework so that they don't have time to play the video games.  Maybe they don't like the video games Whirlwind company show them recently, or maybe other company has the better choice than Whirlwind provided.

Finally, even if Whirlwind games are sure to attract many people in 10 to 25 years old, it doesn't make sense that the sales will dramatically increase in the next few months. Perhaps the games are too expensive for the people to afford. Perhaps the games are full of violence and other things that aren't good for the children under 18 years old.  Perhaps these people already have the video games and they don't need change them now.  Perhaps, the parents don't want their children to play much more video games. So without ruling out other reasons, I can't accept the speculation that the sales will be better in the near future.

In sum, the speculation that the sales of Whirlwind video games will increase is not well supported. To better evaluate the plan on the video games, the argument should give us more information about the total economic environment, the survey's data, and the evidence that the games are sure to be accepted by the market.

Show_RainUID: 2419083

TOPIC: ISSUE144 - "It is the artist, not the critic,* who gives society something of lasting value."
*a person who evaluates works of art, such as novels, films, music, paintings, etc.

WORDS: 510          TIME: 01:00:27         

提纲：
艺术家能给予社会永恒的价值
给予美的享受，作品具有现实意义
金钱价值

评论家也能给予永恒的价值
艺术家本身也是评论家，互相品评作品有助于提高
评论家帮助社会理解作品

I'm sure the artists give the society a lot of lasting value things. But is it true the critic gives nothing to us? I'm afraid that I can't agree with that.

The artists， of course， give us many things, such as, music, great painting, novel, drama, film and so on. All these art forms the artists provide give us pleasure, didactic and beauty that many would insist is the hallmark of the arts. These can be called lasting value.
Another function of the arts is that they present us what is the eternal and universal. Behind every masterpiece, the artists always want to tell the people about their attitude to the life, their views to the world. From these great works of arts, we may see the great humanity. For example, a Renaissance painting of a Madonna and child express a revelation of transcendent spirituality, and we may feel human endurance from a Beethoven symphony.  These great artists were live in hundred years ago, but their works still have effect on people live in today's world. They still have their meaning in the modern society.

In another word, some great paintings are always the No.1 in the auction house as to the prices. Not just because it's an antique, I think, but the more significant thing is what the work bring to us and what the meaning it gives to the art history.

However, the world of art is not only the artists' world, but it's also included the critics.

Sometimes, the artists themselves are the critics. They always have salons to show their recent works, and then what they do is to communicate with each other about the views and opinions on the works.  From this, the artists would know what they may improve and what the things they should insist.  

It can be said that the Impressionism was developed based on the critics. In the early time of its development, a group of artists, including Monet, Renoir and Alfred Sisley, always shared approaches, techniques and other things about the arts. They gave up the traditional kind of painting skills and made their works more accurately and objectively.  Though they were rejected by some people, they still insisted to share the views about the new painting skills and improve it continuously. With the development of this style, the critics began to admit its value, and named it Impressionism. Later the group has revolutionized Western painting.

On the other side, the critics are also useful for expressing the artists' works. Maybe sometimes the works are too hard to understand to ordinary people. But the critics can get the meaning of the arts. They would act as a translator to let the society understand what the artists want to tell us. Because of these critics, we may know how to appreciate these great work of arts and how to get the real meaning the artists want to tell us.

In sum, you can't judge arbitrary who is more important or who gives us something of lasting value. Without the artists, we are sure that we can't have so many things with lasting value. But we may not be aware of the value of these masterpieces without the critics.